How to Prevent Breast Cancer Turns Easy

Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in women. In fact, this disease is also one of the leading causes of death of women. In Indonesia, there are an estimated 350,000 women with breast cancer. But don't worry too much, there are many ways to prevent breast cancer that you can try on your own. Healthy living habits, such as consuming more fruits, avoiding alcoholic drinks, and actively exercising can help prevent breast cancer.

As a First Step, Know the Risk of Breast Cancer

Please note that there are risks associated with breast cancer that cannot be avoided, for example being born as a woman, genetic factors, and reaching a certain age. Let's discuss them one by one.

• Genetic factors

Can not be denied, genetic factors are very influential on the possibility of breast cancer. This factor contributes to the disease by 5-10 percent. However, there are also patients with breast cancer who have no family history of similar diseases. This means that environmental factors also influence, so there are still high hopes to be able to prevent breast cancer through a healthy lifestyle.

• Factor

In the case of breast cancer, an older woman is considered more at risk of developing this disease. The average case of breast cancer is found in women over the age of 50 years. Women who experience menstruation for the first time under the age of 12 years and women who experience menopause after the age of 55 years are also at risk of developing breast cancer.

• Factor

Pregnancy also has to do with breast cancer. The risk of developing breast cancer is higher in adult women who have never been pregnant, are pregnant for the first time at the age above 30 years, and are not breastfeeding.

• Factor

In addition to the factors mentioned above, there are other factors that make breast cancer risk increased. These factors are having experienced breast cancer before, have experienced ovarian cancer, have dense breast tissue, and have been exposed to radiation exposure in the chest area at childhood and adolescence.

Already Know the Risks, Now Focus on Prevention

In addition to the above risk factors, there are also risk factors that can actually be avoided. You can prevent breast cancer by avoiding these factors, namely by doing the following:

• Maintain ideal body weight

Weight is closely related to the risk of breast cancer. Women who are obese after menopause have a risk of developing breast cancer 20-40 percent higher than those who have weight Changes in body weight and time of occurrence of weight gain is thought to be related to the state of the hormones estrogen and insulin in the body. Seeing this risk, maintaining an ideal body weight is one way to prevent breast cancer that you can do.

• Prioritizing food

A healthy diet by prioritizing intake of fruits, vegetables, nuts including soybeans, healthy oils, and high antioxidants, can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. Even a woman who has had breast cancer can have a better quality of life if she avoids fatty foods. Fatty meat, sausages, cream, margarine, butter, and oil are various types of foods that should be avoided as an effort to prevent breast cancer.

• Take time to

Being physically active can reduce the risk of breast cancer. Conversely, the risk of breast cancer increases in women who have not physically cultivated for years. The standard for moderate intensity exercise (such as cycling and brisk walking) is for 2 hours 30 minutes per week.

• Stop smoking

You who have ever been a smoker still have a risk of developing breast cancer by 6-9 percent higher than those who have never smoked at all. Worse conditions you can experience if you are still actively smoking, which is 7-13 percent more risk for developing breast cancer.

• Limit alcoholic drinks

Consuming one glass of alcoholic drinks every day can increase the risk of developing breast cancer by 7-12 percent. Potential for breast cancer will be higher if you drink alcoholic beverages more than one glass per day. This can occur because there is a relationship between alcohol levels with changes in the amount of hormones in the blood. Therefore, reducing alcohol consumption is also one way to prevent breast cancer. Even if possible, it is recommended to stop it altogether.

• Breastfeed your baby regularly

Breastfeeding a baby can help reduce the risk of breast cancer by 22 percent. So far it is not certain why breastfeeding can prevent breast cancer. However, breastfeeding is thought to help balance hormones, prevent exposure to cancer-causing substances, and avoid damage to breast cells.

• Limiting hormone therapy

Hormone therapy is usually done by women related to menopause. Therapy using the hormones estrogen and progesterone is usually long term. For this reason, this therapy increases the risk of breast cancer. If you really need hormone therapy, consult your doctor so that hormone levels can be reduced.

• Avoid exposure

There are a number of things that might expose you to high levels of radiation, such as undergoing a CT scan, working in a health facility that uses radiation, and being exposed to vehicle fumes or chemicals. So, protect yourself from these exposures and avoid as much as possible.

Recognize Changes that Exist

The most common thing to recognize changes in the breast is to do an independent examination called BSE, namely by touching the breasts themselves to detect abnormalities. Do not be lazy to do it because this examination is very important to detect breast cancer early. In addition to an independent examination, you are also encouraged to do a doctor's checkup regularly. The doctor will do a mammogram or breast ultrasound to check the condition of the breast glands. The goal is that if there are signs of breast cancer, it can be treated immediately.